The station was originally licensed to Xavier University; it featured primarily a jazz format. It became an NPR member when the network's Morning Edition debuted, circa 1979-1980. The original NPR member for the Cincinnati area, WGUC, did not want to replace its popular morning drive-time classical music show with the newsmagazine, so WVXU started carrying Morning Edition and other NPR programs. WGUC continued carrying NPR's flagship afternoon newsmagazine, All Things Considered.Over time, WVXU added more news and spoken-word programs to supplement its music schedule, coinciding with the expansion of NPR's schedule in the 1980s. While WGUC and WVXU between them provided most of the NPR programs available to a single market, the two NPR flagship newsmagazines aired separately. On August 22, 2005, Xavier transferred WVXU and its "X-Star Network" of translator stations to CPRI, bringing the station and WGUC under the same licensee. This permitted elimination of program duplication and a realignment of formats. WGUC transferred nearly all of its remaining spoken-word programming, including All Things Considered, to WVXU. WGUC now airs classical music almost exclusively, while WVXU carries news and information programs, including both NPR flagship newsmagazines, along with some jazz and blues music programs on weekend evenings. On March 1, 2009, Cincinnati Public Radio took over management of WMUB, which is licensed to Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. As part of the deal, Miami retained ownership of the station serving southwestern Ohio and southeastern Indiana, though it is now a full-time satellite of WVXU. WMUB brings WVXU's programming to areas north of Cincinnati where the main signal is weak.
Programming
91.7 WVXU/88.5 WMUB carries many of the top rated public radio programs from program providers such as NPR, American Public Media, Public Radio International and PRX. In addition, a locally produced talk show, Cincinnati Edition, airs each weekday at 12:00pm. This show covers a wide range of topics from health, education, arts, politics and more. Listeners are encouraged to engage with the program by calling in, emailing, or via Facebook and Twitter.
News team
WVXU has a news team of five who report and host. The five are: Maryanne Zeleznik, Jay Hansleman Ann Thompson, Tana Weingartner, Bill Rinehart, and Ambriehl Crutchfield. The station's website is augmented by Howard Wilkinson, and John Kiesewetter
Community events
Since beginning operation of WVXU in August 2005, the station has brought in a variety of public radio hosts and programs and acts as media sponsor for various community-wide events. Examples of shows and hosts who have visited Cincinnati: live broadcasts of "A Prairie Home Companion," "Whad'ya Know," and "Talk of the Nation." Recorded episode of "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me," Visits from Ira Glass, Lynne Rossetto Kasper, Terry Gross, Diane Rehm, and Carl Kasell. Media sponsor/partner for: Books by the Banks, On the Same Page, various theater production and events.
Translator network
Shortly after CPRI acquired WVXU, it sold the network of translator stations that Xavier had built in rural parts of Ohio and Michigan during the 1990s to provide service to those outside the clear signal of another NPR affiliate. The Ohio frequencies were acquired by an evangelical Christian broadcaster, while the Michigan stations were sold to commercial interests. The X-Star network included:
WVXM West Union, Ohio/Maysville, Kentucky: Later, WVXM was assigned to the Manistee, Michigan, translator and the West Union translator was given the WVXW call letters
In addition to airing its regular programming in digital sound on HD Radio, WVXU airs , a local music service owned and produced by Northside's on its second sideband channel.
